Coalmining

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon.

The motion opposed the government approvals of the Shenhua Watermark coal mine in the Liverpool Plains.

Motion text

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) Shenhua Australia Holdings is seeking to develop a 35 square kilometre coal mine on the Liverpool Plains in north west New South Wales,

(ii) the Liverpool Plains is one of the most productive agricultural regions in the nation, with productivity 40 per cent above the national average,

(iii) the proposed mine threatens the most significant underground water resources in the Murray -Darling Basin, and farmers are dependent on access to these water resources for their survival,

(iv) if the mine proceeds it would:

(A) comprise three open-cut pits, plus associated infrastructure, to mine up to 10 million tonnes of coal per year for 30 years and rail infrastructure to take the coal to the Port of Newcastle for export, and

(B) destroy significant areas of local Indigenous heritage, including grinding grooves that were used by Gomeroi warriors to sharpen spears,

(v) the proposal to relocate Indigenous artefacts does not acknowledge connections to land and country,

(vi) as the price of coal is in structural decline it is irresponsible to risk valuable farming land for a coal mine when renewable energy is commercially viable, and

(vii) more than 750 people attended the Harvest Festival to support the call for no mining on the Liverpool Plains; and

(b) calls on:

(i) the Prime Minister, Mr Turnbull, to reverse the Federal Government's approval of the Shenhua Watermark coal mine; and

(ii) the New South Wales Government not to grant a mining licence for the Shenhua Watermark coal mine.